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Mobile manufacturing company Spice signed an MoU with the government of Uttar Pradesh for establishing a plant with an investment of about Rs 500 crore.
Affordable mobile phones from Spice will be produced from the UP will be marketed in Asia and African markets. The manufacturing unit’s capacity will be around 1.5 to 2 million in the beginning and can be expected upto 5 million pieces in a month gradually.
"The manufacturing unit is part of our contribution to the 'Make in India' vision. Domestic manufacturing will also help us introduce affordable mobile Internet devices in India. We will look at devices priced below Rs 5,000 and we intend to start manufacturing by the end of this year," Spice Group Chairman Dilip Modi said.
Spice mobile handsets is having market of about a million handsets a month and has a revenue run rate of Rs 150-200 crore. Currently, its devices are manufactured in China. According to research firm IDC, India was the fastest growing smartphone market in Asia/Pacific with July-September 2014. The shipments increased 82 per cent year-on-year to 23.3 million units in the third quarter of this year, while it was higher by 27 per cent on a quarter-on-quarter basis.
Make in India is flagship programme of PM Narendra Modi and his government. The Spice mobile’s manufacturing unit will certainly encourage other companies who are completely relying on imports.
-Kannamsai
